Tonight, our special guest is Shannon Amy Lewis, from 8-9pm
From 9-10 pm we’ve got new music from Trookers who are all the way from Shetland, with a very jaunty musical song called Minute Steak, and a Halloween track from a local band named “Devils’ Avocados” (what a genius name!) which is anything but jaunty and musical. It is ferocious and bloodcurdling, is what it is.

We should also have new music from a band called “King Creature” who dropped a CD at the studios recently.

Tune in on 106.1 & 107.8 fm in North Devon, on DAB, and online or on your phone with the Radio Player app.

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Featuring the best unsigned and under the radar bands from North Devon and beyond. As well as classic tracks and current chart music.

New to the show music from “The Undercover Hippy”, “Steve Waters”, “Chris Good” and “Tankus The Henge”

And music also from local artists, “Scott Xander Linn & the Broken Bottles”, “Breaks Collective”, “Skatatones”, “Rushwood”, and “Falling Apart”

Across the pond this week features a band called SIMO from Nashville Tennessee

Gone But Not Forgotten, Forgotten But Not Gone, features Lynsey De Paul – You can still influence my decision as to which of her songs to play although I am leaning towards “Ooh I Do” because I’m guessing you’ve heard “No Honestly” and “Rock Bottom” enough just lately –
Forgotten But Not Gone is a new single from Katrina Leskanitch of Katrina and the Waves fame. #GBNFFBNG

Carrier pigeons should be directed to the back of the co-op 21 High Street Barnstaple

Weather for North Devon

Today:

Areas of mist and fog will slowly clear to give some sunny spells in the morning. It will become rather cloudy and windier in the afternoon, however, and outbreaks of locally heavy rain will push into southernmost counties later. Maximum Temperature 16C.

Tonight:

Spells of sometimes heavy rain will spread northwards across the region overnight. It will also be windy for many, with a risk of gales across exposed England Channel coasts. Minimum Temperature 8C.

Monday:

It will be a cloudy, breezy and damp day with further spells of rain, which could be heavy in places. As a result it will feel quite chilly. Maximum Temperature 14C.

Outlook for Tuesday to Thursday:

Tuesday, fog patches clearing, then sunny spells and isolated showers. Band of stronger winds and locally heavy rain moving northeastwards later on Wednesday, clearing to sunshine and showers on Thursday.

Issued at: 0500 on Sun 12 Oct 2014

Undercover Hippy

Introduced to me by a music promoter called Richie of the Mojo Hobo agency who also handle several local artists including Small Town Jones, and Tuesday Syndicate. Undercover Hippy kicked off as a solo artist but has gradually assembled a band along the way. His stuff is very fresh with catchy riffs and great lyrics with a great sense of humour.

“Last Chance To Dance” is the track I’m playing and it really should get your feet moving

Steve Waters

I had a clandestine meeting with my friend Ginny, well, if you can call coffee in the Manor House Cafe, Ilfracombe clandestine.
She wanted to give me a CD. We chatted about Littermouth because Ginny does PR for the Bude rockers, and we also talked about Dave Sharp who Ginny knows quite well. It was via Dave that she met Steve Waters and they are planning a collaboration between the three of them.

Meanwhile, I’m playing “Father’s Song” from Steve’s album “Learning As We Go”

Tankus the Henge

First of two tracks from the band that describe their sound as apocalyptic carnival rock and roll. “Recurring Dream” there’s a superb video for this on YouTube. Tankus play in Ilfracombe 23rd October and Barnstaple 24th October do get along to one or both of those.

Scott Xander Linn & the Broken Bottles

Much loved local band, Liz always requests them when I ask for requests and I know a lot of you like them but don’t say anything so….

The Breaks Collective

A friend of mine by the name of Andrew, spotted me in a shop the other day and asked if I was the chap on the radio who played a song by a local band last Sunday.
I had to admit is was probably me. He then went on to say he couldn’t remember the name of the band but he really liked it. All he could recall was that I’d said the guitarist Harvey had just started a course in music in Bristol.

Obviously it could only be The Breaks Collective so this is that track “Fun In Mind” for Andy, who has also since found the band online. THIS is what I do this for.

Gone But Not Forgotten, Forgotten But Not Gone

This week it’s a self selection, I’d love to get your requests for this though. Twitter @OlliOnTheRadio #GBNFFBNG

Lynsey De Paul died on the 1st October this year aged 64 (OR 66 depending on whether you believe the BBC or the General Registry Office)
She had a string of hits in her own right including “Sugar Me”, “Ooh I Do”, and “No Honestly”, as well as the Eurovision song “Rock Bottom” with Mike Moran.
She also wrote and co wrote a number of hits and worked as an atress and presenter.

Katrina Leskanitch was the lead singer of Katrina and the Waves. Obviously they are most famous for “Walking On Sunshine” and the Eurovision winner “Love Shine A Light”
The band broke up shortly after that amid a lot of legal wranglings but Katrina Leskanitch who was a huge teenage crush of mine still looks and sounds amazing and has released a brand newalbum “Blisland” from which I am playing the title track.

Across the pond this week features SIMO from Nashville Tennessee They have a sound reminiscent of late sixties early seventies psychedelic rock and have been compared to Hendrix and Cream, as well as taking influences from the more recent garage rock scene of bands like Jet and The Strokes.

Skaad For Life #Skaad4life

It’s a no brainer this week and next. Skata Tones are supporting Tankus the Henge at the Golden Lion Tap, in Barnstaple and as North Devon’s best loved Ska/Reggae band they are a shoe in for this slot.

“Cash 22” (it’s all about the money)

Chris Good is from Plymouth and I heard of him because he posted a comment on here.

Love the blog, what a great find.

While I get stuck into digging around, perhaps you’d be happy to take a peek at my debut album, launched on Radio Devon and BBC Introducing, Devon on 1st Feb. Links to Spotify are on my site. http://www.goodbyname.co.uk

Thank ye!

Chris Good

I haven’t even looked at this blog for ages, so when I did I followed up all the genuine comments and downloaded tracks where possible.

“Would You Sail With Me” is from his e.p. “To The Sun” and can be downloaded free via his website

Rushwood

Angela Elswood – vocals Alex Rushton – guitar and Aiden Gotch – drums
I’m still salivating at the prospect of new material from this outfit from Bude but for now I must content myself with “She Came From The Blue” which is available from Bandcamp

Falling Apart

Punk rock covers band Falling Apart have been very busy gigging with support from a brand new all girl band called The Distraction. Four 17 yr olds who have still got a lot to learn but I believe they will be giving me a single to play before the year is out.

Tankus The Henge

Two Tankus songs in one show, I know it’s cheeky but my excuse is that I am really excited to have secured their services for a gig in Ilfracombe as well as their gig in Barnstaple. I’m still going to go to both gigs anyway but for those who rely on public transport it is now much easier to get along to one or other. Musically this band are great but they also put on a fantastic carnival of a show that really shouldn’t be missed.

Jaz Delorean – the album

Jaz Delorean prior to a Tankus the Henge gig at The Beaver, Appledore

The lead singer and pianist of Tankus The Henge, a prodigious talent, who can also be seen playing trombone and accordion in the band’s live sets, dressed in a battered hat and a variety of suits usually in eye searing shades of orange or red, also has a solo career.

He is no less flamboyant and theatrical, in his renditions of the songs on this 7 track eponymous album, despite the reduced instrumentation.

This is a bit like Tankus the Henge stripped to the bones just Jaz’s tinkling, clamouring, beautiful yet raucous piano, coupled with his rich gravelly vocals and some thoughtful and humourous lyrics.

All I do is talk about the weather,
whether I’m right,
whether I’m wrong …

The track listing is as follows

Weather 02:57

Pragmatophobia And Other Delusions 04:51

Shoeshine 03:17

Temporary 04:00

Indigestion 03:19

Wayward 03:09

Rondo 06:24

Rondo is an instrumental and I could imagine as I listened a flickering black and white film, the theatrical sighs of a silent actress, the cunning mute laugh of a be-cloaked villain, the storyboards explaining the tale of woe.

Wayward tells the tragic tales of various circus type characters, a prevailing theme with Tankus the Henge.

By far my preferred way to buy unsigned music is from Bandcamp. They pay the artist more than the likes of Amazon or iTunes and the download interface is WAY better than Soundcloud or similar.

I’m looking forward to Tankus the Henge performing their gigs in Ilfracombe and Barnstaple in a couple of weeks time. I should get a chance to meet the band properly as I have arranged their accommodation. Maybe some kind of interview could happen?

RIGHT, I was writing my first post in ages when…….

It wasn’t going well. I’m sharing this computer with an eight year old girl who watches Barbie videos on YouTube. Not professional videos but videos of grown up women playing with Barbies. How sad is that?

So I watched the news, and Points South West, and then East-Enders came on and I decided to go out and see a band at The Chill Bar. Headlining was Falling Apart who, by the way were the best I have seen them and that is saying something.

Supporting was a very new band, The Distraction, playing their fifth gig. All aged 17, and all girls. Now, I had seen video of one of their early live performances at a local open mic. They obviously had potential but needed some refinement and experience. There was also a recording that they had done at the Ariel Studios. The recording was tidy but not quite broadcast quality. A decent demo. All in all I was hoping to see potential.

I was not disappointed, the song they recorded is their own composition. It is a great little song with a catchy stop start riff, quite vocal driven, would be right up xFM’s street. The rest of their songs so far are covers. White Stripes, Blur, Jet, Joan Jett, etc. The Lady Gaga (or whatever) didn’t work for me. Anyway, generally good stuff, with a few raw edges, to be expected from four 17 yr olds who are still doing A levels. The Donnas were pretty raw in their early recordings.

Then I found my mind pondering the Multiverse.
Countless parallel universes each differing only by a single decision made by one individual.
In each universe there is one small difference; one decision that one person made that changed the course of history. Just like Arnold Rimmer in Red Dwarf, who exists in the form of “Ace” a gung ho space jock who test pilots a universe-hopping spacecraft and meets infinite versions of himself; including Arnold Judas Rimmer, the dead guy with the goalpost forehead, full of insecurities, blaming everyone but himself for his woes.

I could visualise a future in which these four young ladies carried on playing gigs around North Devon for six months and then ended up gradually losing faith in the music business and getting “proper jobs” or having kids and settling down.And I could also see them playing sold out gigs in big venues, getting heavy rotation on xFM radio, and on the front cover of Kerrang magazine.

There is even a universe where they get signed by Simon Cowell and produce a pop version of “My Sharona” but I really don’t want to think about that.

This isn’t meant to be a long post so I will stop shortly. I’ve had a few beers at the gig, so I want to press “publish” before I go to bed and wake up regretting my actions.

The band needs to do the following things, almost all at once and not absolutely in this order. Hence bullet points not numbers.

Singer get professional vocal coaching

Guitarist practice for several hours every day

Record their first original song to a proper broadcast standard, which may take a day in the studio

Spend some money on clothes to create a LOOK that fits with their style of music AND appeals to the target audience.

Sort out a manager, and a simple legal agreement about writing credits, performance credits and all that stuff that music legals do.

Get a proper band website, and make sure social media is all set up properly.

Get a Bandcamp site to sell their msuic

Get an ISRC for their music, register with PRS, get airplay for their new single (the last part is easy)

Oh dear me it’s been WAAAY too long since I posted.
I might be getting some more free time, ominous work meeting about my crappy day job. Money’s not much but have been getting out of debt, and the boss is nice but patronising. Really not ready to walk away from it but maybe the decision is not mine to take.

Olli on the radio
The Voice N Devon

Local radio for North Devon, on digital, online and on 106.1 and 107.8 fm across North Devon

Thank you to Anna Takken for an excellent show as always.

It’s all about the girls today, I decided to pick out 11 superb pieces of music featuring girls. I could fill a dozen shows with female vocals from unsigned artists so I apologise if your favourite is not here.

I’ve got Lenny Savage from Bristol.

Kiera Osment from North Devon

Spyplane from Kent

Holly Morwenna from the deep dark woods on the other side of Devon.

Galley Beggar from London

Auction for the Promise Club from a country called Cornwall.

Daylight Saving from Kent.

Sound Of The Sirens from Exeter.

The Reasoning from Cardiff

Jax from North Devon

Scarlet’s Wake from Nottingham

Weather

Issued at: 0400 on Sun 13 Apr 2014

Today:

Sunny, less than 5% chance of rain, Maximum Temperature 15 °C.

Tonight:

Staying dry overnight not much cloud so temperatures could drop low enough for a little frost. Still less than 5% chance of rain. Minimum Temperature 3 °C.

Monday:

After a chilly start, it will be a fine day with spells of strong sunshine. With winds becoming even lighter, it will feel pleasantly warm in the sun. Maximum Temperature 16 °C.

Outlook for Tuesday to Thursday:

Largely fine and sunny. Chilly at night but becoming increasingly warm by day. Probably turning somewhat cloudier through Thursday but it should remain mainly dry.

Unsigned bands

Lenny Savage – Bristol

She’s only done the one album that I’m aware of but she still gigs regularly mostly around the Bristol and Avon area.
Quantrelle has 11 eclectic tracks with a retro feel, broadly similar to Caro Emerald. Track 4 “Satellites”

Kiera Osment – North Devon

Of course, immensely talented teenagers are two a penny round these parts, but then again Devon just has more than it’s fair share of talent.

Spyplane – Kent

Sherrie Tappenden has a voice that just gets me right. It’s not perfect in the way of a polished popstar but I know that she will take that as the compliment it is intended to be. J’Adore is a live recording and the band took delight in switching to reggae just for long enough to make her giggle at the end.

Holly Morwenna – Devon

She’s from the other side of Devon but we won’t hold that against her. She’s a big hit on BBC introducing which is where I first heard her. I am going to play “Open Up The Sky” for you.

Galley Beggar – London

They sound like they should be from Glastonbury or something with their modern take on folk. Outlandish Knight is a traditional folk song with many versions including Steeleye Span’s version titled Lady Isabell and the Elf Knight. This one finishes with a great bit that should get your feet moving.